Please view Optimal training frequency for the glutes part II for the latest and most in-depth calculator.
I’ve been getting a lot of questions about workout schedules, and especially how often to train the Glutes. Well here’s my answer: when they’re recovered.
Multiple factors affect recovery time.
As you can read in my article on optimal training frequency for the Glutes, one of these factors is the type of exercise you do (stretcher, activator, or pumper).
In short:
Stretcher exercises cause a lot of muscle damage in the Glutes (Squats, Romanian deadlifts, etc.)
Activator exercises cause a lot of muscle tension in the Glutes (Hip thrusts, Step-ups, etc.)
Pumper exercises cause a lot of metabolic stress in the Glutes (Band exercises for higher reps)
However, this is only part of the story…
Part II of Glute recovery time
On the other hand, how developed your Glutes are also affects recovery time. A great way to assess Glute development is to look at your strength on the Hip Thrust. After all, a bigger (more developed) muscle is a stronger muscle.
Bret Contreras (the Glute Guy) has outlined ranges of Hip Thrust strength to indicate how developed the Glutes are (beginner, intermediate, advanced, elite). Scientific research shows that the more developed your Glutes are, the shorter it takes for them to recover.
However, there’s another factor we need to take into account. Science shows that just like training stress, psychological stress has a major impact on how quickly you recover. High-demanding jobs with a lot of demands and responsibility, or poor stress coping abilities will thus increase your recovery time for a given workout.
To help you decide on how often to train your Glutes, I’ve created the calculator below. It estimates how long it takes your Glutes to recover (and grow back bigger/stronger) for different types of exercises, based on Glute development and stress levels.
The calculator
Note again that these are just estimates. To assess whether your Glutes are truly recovered, look at your Glute strength compared to the previous workout. This calculator can help you with that. If you’re stronger on an exercise like the Hip Thrust, there’s a good chance your Glutes have grown back bigger (and are thus recovered).
Example
Jane has a moderately stressful life, being a manager with a lot of responsibility at a big firm, but able to cope with this well. She hip thrusts 60 lbs for 10 reps. The calculator estimates that her Glutes take 36 – 54 hours to recover. We take the high end to enter as a recovery time, because Jane primarily performs stretcher/activator type exercises during her workouts. After entering 54 hours into the field under the picture, we see that Jane should optimally train her Glutes 3.1 times per week.
Putting this information into practice
You can read any article and get great insights, but people often find it hard to put it into practice, and integrate it in their lives.
Coaching is (the) key. Look at how I helped dozens of people like yourself with an optimized program.
References
1. Damas, F., Phillips, S., Vechin, F. C., & Ugrinowitsch, C. (2015). A review of resistance training-induced changes in skeletal muscle protein synthesis and their contribution to hypertrophy. Sports Medicine, 45(6), 801-807.
2. Stults-Kolehmainen, M. A., Bartholomew, J. B., & Sinha, R. (2014). Chronic psychological stress impairs recovery of muscular function and somatic sensations over a 96-hour period. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 28(7), 2007-2017.
Hi, i didnt quite understand the calculator. Could you post exampled on people? Please?
Hello Felipe,
If you fill in the 2 questions about your training experience (glute strength) and stress levels, a picture will show below. In this picture you can see your estimated recovery time if you do 3-6 sets of either Stretchers, Activators, or Pumpers (for more info on these, check out my other article: https://www.bodylogiq.org/en/optimal-training-frequency-glutes-part-exercise-type/ ).
This is a range, for example when you hip thrust your bw x20, and have a moderately stressful life, your recovery time will probably range from 48 hours (pumpers) to 72 hours (stretchers). This translates (after you fill it in below the picture) to an optimal Glute training frequency between 2.3 and 3.5 times per week.
Hope that helps.
Thanks, th calculatoe says 7 times a week. I was working on my glutes twice a week, and now five times a week, looking for getting that 7 times a week. Thanks for answering!
More than welcome, Felipe. Keep me updated on how it goes for you. Be wary that you divide your current training volume over those 5 days, instead of ramping that up too much.
Hi, i didnt quite understand the calculator. Could you post exampled on people? Please?
Hello Felipe,
If you fill in the 2 questions about your training experience (glute strength) and stress levels, a picture will show below. In this picture you can see your estimated recovery time if you do 3-6 sets of either Stretchers, Activators, or Pumpers (for more info on these, check out my other article: https://www.bodylogiq.org/en/optimal-training-frequency-glutes-part-exercise-type/ ).
This is a range, for example when you hip thrust your bw x20, and have a moderately stressful life, your recovery time will probably range from 48 hours (pumpers) to 72 hours (stretchers). This translates (after you fill it in below the picture) to an optimal Glute training frequency between 2.3 and 3.5 times per week.
Hope that helps.
Thanks, th calculatoe says 7 times a week. I was working on my glutes twice a week, and now five times a week, looking for getting that 7 times a week. Thanks for answering!
More than welcome, Felipe. Keep me updated on how it goes for you. Be wary that you divide your current training volume over those 5 days, instead of ramping that up too much.
I can’t see how you take volume (number of sets and reps) into account. There has to be a difference in recovery time between one set of hip thrusts and 6 sets of hip thrusts (all down for 10 reps with PRE 9), hasn’t it?
So, with less volume you should need less recovery time and be able to train more frequently. But I think that aspect is missing in your calculation.
Hello Karbon,
Definitely, this will indeed change for amount of volume for one training. The calculator assumes a reasonable 4 – 8 sets of Glute exercises per workout. Less sets need less recovery time. But there isn’t THAT much difference between, say, 3 and 5 sets. Again, the calculator doesn’t give an exact number. It simply gives an estimate to go off and experiment with yourself.
I can’t see how you take volume (number of sets and reps) into account. There has to be a difference in recovery time between one set of hip thrusts and 6 sets of hip thrusts (all down for 10 reps with PRE 9), hasn’t it?
So, with less volume you should need less recovery time and be able to train more frequently. But I think that aspect is missing in your calculation.
Hello Karbon,
Definitely, this will indeed change for amount of volume for one training. The calculator assumes a reasonable 4 – 8 sets of Glute exercises per workout. Less sets need less recovery time. But there isn’t THAT much difference between, say, 3 and 5 sets. Again, the calculator doesn’t give an exact number. It simply gives an estimate to go off and experiment with yourself.
Thank you so much for such a great calculator. I found your website from your guest post on Bret Contreras’ website and became an instant fan. Maybe I’m imagining this, but did you comment somewhere that you were making a guide for losing fat while also building the glutes? Maybe my imagination is making things up. 😛
Hello Melissa,
You’re more than welcome. Your memory’s not deceiving you. I’m indeed writing such an eGuide. I have a list of people that will be able to get the first copies. If you would like me to add you, please email [email protected] with your email address.
Thank you so much for such a great calculator. I found your website from your guest post on Bret Contreras’ website and became an instant fan. Maybe I’m imagining this, but did you comment somewhere that you were making a guide for losing fat while also building the glutes? Maybe my imagination is making things up. 😛
Hello Melissa,
You’re more than welcome. Your memory’s not deceiving you. I’m indeed writing such an eGuide. I have a list of people that will be able to get the first copies. If you would like me to add you, please email [email protected] with your email address.
Hello thanks for all this great info, I’m just wondering why calculator gives me 8 times per week :p I’m using pumpers (lower range) and 5.6 with stretchers. I know I’m missing something cause certainly I can’t do stretchers every day of the week hehe could you please explain? Thanks a lot !
Hello Sara, it may actually surprise a lot of women how often they can train their glutes.
If your stress levels are low, and you’re quite advanced (high level of glute development) you can train them very often. See section 9 of our article at bayesianbodybuilding for more info: https://bayesianbodybuilding.com/why-women-should-not-train-like-men/
When deciding how often you should train the glutes per week, 2 factors are important:
1) exercise type (like you correctly said, stretchers take longer to recover from)
2) training experience (I didn’t discuss this in my article on training frequency for the glutes, but it’s very important to consider)
How is your Hip Thrust strength? Then I can see if 8 times per week is indeed optimal for you if doing stretchers.
I’m in the same boat as Sara. Says I should do glutes 8x/week, I currently do 3. I Hip Thrusted 225x8x3 in my last workout.
Hello thanks for all this great info, I’m just wondering why calculator gives me 8 times per week :p I’m using pumpers (lower range) and 5.6 with stretchers. I know I’m missing something cause certainly I can’t do stretchers every day of the week hehe could you please explain? Thanks a lot !
Hello Sara, it may actually surprise a lot of women how often they can train their glutes.
If your stress levels are low, and you’re quite advanced (high level of glute development) you can train them very often. See section 9 of our article at bayesianbodybuilding for more info: https://bayesianbodybuilding.com/why-women-should-not-train-like-men/
When deciding how often you should train the glutes per week, 2 factors are important:
1) exercise type (like you correctly said, stretchers take longer to recover from)
2) training experience (I didn’t discuss this in my article on training frequency for the glutes, but it’s very important to consider)
How is your Hip Thrust strength? Then I can see if 8 times per week is indeed optimal for you if doing stretchers.
Thank you for your time, I just saw your answer and read the other article very interesting and I agree after HIIT I feel drained !! 🙂 I can tell you after stretchers on day 2 I still feel it and day 3 is almost gone as day 4 I have fully recovered to not feel it at all. I do 3 sets of 8 reps 95 – 105 pounds but I don’t think I have strong glutes at all, my legs are strong though. I’m also not sure how many excersices I should be doing per day if I were to train 4 times a week 2 leg days (trying to hit as mentioned in the article all the glutes) or how to distribute the 8 suggested here. Thank you Stijn
You’re welcome, Sara.
Very good. Indeed, your body perceives HIIT almost like the same type of stress as a weightlifting workout.
Without detailed counseling, I can not help your individual case. To give you something to work with, I advise doing between 15 and 35 sets for the glutes per week. I would advise doing 1 main exercise for the glutes per day.
Ideally, you’d train the glutes every day and switch around doing something like: day 1 hip thrust, day 2 romanian deadlift, 3 bulgarian split squat and repeat. You can play around with this to see when you make most progress. If you can only train 4 days, definitely train the glutes every of those workouts.
Hope that helped.
Thank you for your time, I just saw your answer and read the other article very interesting and I agree after HIIT I feel drained !! 🙂 I can tell you after stretchers on day 2 I still feel it and day 3 is almost gone as day 4 I have fully recovered to not feel it at all. I do 3 sets of 8 reps 95 – 105 pounds but I don’t think I have strong glutes at all, my legs are strong though. I’m also not sure how many excersices I should be doing per day if I were to train 4 times a week 2 leg days (trying to hit as mentioned in the article all the glutes) or how to distribute the 8 suggested here. Thank you Stijn
You’re welcome, Sara.
Very good. Indeed, your body perceives HIIT almost like the same type of stress as a weightlifting workout.
Without detailed counseling, I can not help your individual case. To give you something to work with, I advise doing between 15 and 35 sets for the glutes per week. I would advise doing 1 main exercise for the glutes per day.
Ideally, you’d train the glutes every day and switch around doing something like: day 1 hip thrust, day 2 romanian deadlift, 3 bulgarian split squat and repeat. You can play around with this to see when you make most progress. If you can only train 4 days, definitely train the glutes every of those workouts.
Hope that helped.
Hi, I would like to know how many exercises I should put in a 4-day gluteal routine, I mean how many stretchers, activators and pumps.
Hi Alisson,
This depends on how advanced you are. If you’re very advanced, you’ll need more different exercises to keep the glute growth going (up to 4-5). If you’re a beginner, the hip thrust and bulgarian split squat/romanian deadlift will suffice, along with some accessory abduction/rotation exercises.
Basically, I can not give you a good answer without knowing how strong you are in the hip thrust (which tells me how advanced your glutes are).
Hello, the truth is that I am not a beginner, as far as hip thrust I can lift 225 lbs.
I want to train 4 times the buttocks a week and 2 legs, but as I told you, I do not know how many sets of each exercise and how many exercises (stretchers, activators and pumps).
A
this is my training:
Monday: Legs + Glute Pump (Stretchers + Pumpers)
Tuesday: Glutes (Activators + Pumpers)
Wednesday: Chest + Back* + Glute Pump (Pumpers)
Thursday: Lower Body Strength (Stretchers + Pumpers)
Friday: Arms* + Glute Pump (Pumpers)
Saturday: Glutes (Activators)
Hi, I would like to know how many exercises I should put in a 4-day gluteal routine, I mean how many stretchers, activators and pumps.
Hi Alisson,
This depends on how advanced you are. If you’re very advanced, you’ll need more different exercises to keep the glute growth going (up to 4-5). If you’re a beginner, the hip thrust and bulgarian split squat/romanian deadlift will suffice, along with some accessory abduction/rotation exercises.
Basically, I can not give you a good answer without knowing how strong you are in the hip thrust (which tells me how advanced your glutes are).
Hello, the truth is that I am not a beginner, as far as hip thrust I can lift 225 lbs.
I want to train 4 times the buttocks a week and 2 legs, but as I told you, I do not know how many sets of each exercise and how many exercises (stretchers, activators and pumps).
A
this is my training:
Monday: Legs + Glute Pump (Stretchers + Pumpers)
Tuesday: Glutes (Activators + Pumpers)
Wednesday: Chest + Back* + Glute Pump (Pumpers)
Thursday: Lower Body Strength (Stretchers + Pumpers)
Friday: Arms* + Glute Pump (Pumpers)
Saturday: Glutes (Activators)
Hello, the truth is that I am not a beginner, as far as hip thrust I can lift 225 lbs.
I want to train 4 times the buttocks a week and 2 legs, but as I told you, I do not know how many sets of each exercise and how many exercises (stretchers, activators and pumps).
Aqui esta en el entrenamiento:
Monday: Legs + Glute Pump (Stretchers + Pumpers)
Tuesday: Glutes (Activators + Pumpers)
Wednesday: Chest + Back* + Glute Pump (Pumpers)
Thursday: Lower Body Strength (Stretchers + Pumpers)
Friday: Arms* + Glute Pump (Pumpers)
Saturday: Glutes (Activators)
Hi Alisson,
Ah all right, if that’s for multiple repetitions that’s pretty advanced.
A setup like this actually looks good! Maybe perform stretchers+activators on saturday instead of monday, as you’ve got an extra day to recover from them then. Aim for 20-30 stretcher/activator sets per week and you’re golden I think.
Make sure you try to get stronger on the important exercises like the romanian deadlift and hip thrust to get your glutes to the next level.
Good luck!
Hello, the truth is that I am not a beginner, as far as hip thrust I can lift 225 lbs.
I want to train 4 times the buttocks a week and 2 legs, but as I told you, I do not know how many sets of each exercise and how many exercises (stretchers, activators and pumps).
Aqui esta en el entrenamiento:
Monday: Legs + Glute Pump (Stretchers + Pumpers)
Tuesday: Glutes (Activators + Pumpers)
Wednesday: Chest + Back* + Glute Pump (Pumpers)
Thursday: Lower Body Strength (Stretchers + Pumpers)
Friday: Arms* + Glute Pump (Pumpers)
Saturday: Glutes (Activators)
Hi Alisson,
Ah all right, if that’s for multiple repetitions that’s pretty advanced.
A setup like this actually looks good! Maybe perform stretchers+activators on saturday instead of monday, as you’ve got an extra day to recover from them then. Aim for 20-30 stretcher/activator sets per week and you’re golden I think.
Make sure you try to get stronger on the important exercises like the romanian deadlift and hip thrust to get your glutes to the next level.
Good luck!
Thanks for answering.
It would be bad if what would do the day Saturday that were activators do it on Friday, so I would leave Saturday and Sunday free?
Sounds like a good idea.
Thanks for answering.
It would be bad if what would do the day Saturday that were activators do it on Friday, so I would leave Saturday and Sunday free?
Sounds like a good idea.
hello, could you tell me examples of triggers that are not in the image.
Hello Samantha,
What do you mean by triggers?
hello, could you tell me examples of triggers that are not in the image.
Hello Samantha,
What do you mean by triggers?
Hello, sorry I mean examples of activators.
Ah, some good examples are Step-ups, Hip thrusts, Cable pull-throughs, and Donkey (pendulum) kickbacks.
Hello, sorry I mean examples of activators.
Ah, some good examples are Step-ups, Hip thrusts, Cable pull-throughs, and Donkey (pendulum) kickbacks.
Hello,
I am a bit confused with the extent of the calculator. When entering my stats, the calculator says I should train glutes 9-10 times per week. Can many of these sessions be just bands (or ‘pumpers’)? And how many sets should I be doing each time I work the glutes? I usually do pretty high volume (high number of sets) leg days 3x/wk with a variety of exercise types. I see that you recommended about 8 sets of glute work in a session for a previous commenter which is FAR less than I would typically do. Wouldn’t reducing my volume drastically result in less hypertrophy? And are there different ideal number of sets for different types of exercises (stretchers vs pumpers vs activators)? Thank you!
Hello Kiana,
Amount of sets heavily depends on the type of exercise. For example you could do 20 sets of pumpers and recover fine, but 5 sets of stretchers would take longer. Try to always get stronger on the main exercises for the glutes, because a stronger muscle is a bigger muscle. Examples of these are: Romanian deadlifts, rack pulls with focus on glutes, barbell hip thrusts, split squats, etc. You can add in glute pumpers, sure, but for most people they shouldn’t constitute the ‘bread and butter’ of your program.
Remember that 9-10 times per week is an estimate. But yes, some women fare well on training their glutes twice daily. If you’re really as advanced as you say (strength-wise) aim for 20-30 sets of stretchers and activators (combined) per week. You may add in pumpers, but it’s not entirely necessary.
Hello,
I am a bit confused with the extent of the calculator. When entering my stats, the calculator says I should train glutes 9-10 times per week. Can many of these sessions be just bands (or ‘pumpers’)? And how many sets should I be doing each time I work the glutes? I usually do pretty high volume (high number of sets) leg days 3x/wk with a variety of exercise types. I see that you recommended about 8 sets of glute work in a session for a previous commenter which is FAR less than I would typically do. Wouldn’t reducing my volume drastically result in less hypertrophy? And are there different ideal number of sets for different types of exercises (stretchers vs pumpers vs activators)? Thank you!
Hello Kiana,
Amount of sets heavily depends on the type of exercise. For example you could do 20 sets of pumpers and recover fine, but 5 sets of stretchers would take longer. Try to always get stronger on the main exercises for the glutes, because a stronger muscle is a bigger muscle. Examples of these are: Romanian deadlifts, rack pulls with focus on glutes, barbell hip thrusts, split squats, etc. You can add in glute pumpers, sure, but for most people they shouldn’t constitute the ‘bread and butter’ of your program.
Remember that 9-10 times per week is an estimate. But yes, some women fare well on training their glutes twice daily. If you’re really as advanced as you say (strength-wise) aim for 20-30 sets of stretchers and activators (combined) per week. You may add in pumpers, but it’s not entirely necessary.
Hi, could you tell me what kind of exercises are these:
1.Lying Cable Bent Knee Hip Extensions off Bench
2. Lying Cable Leg Curls
3. Lying Cable Leg Extensions
4. Standing Cable Hip Extensions
5. Standing Cable Hip Extensions Bent Knee
6. Standing Cable Hip Flexion
7. Lying Cable Hip Extensions Bent Knee
Thank you
Hi Katia,
All of the exercises you mentioned are Activators, as is mostly the case with cable exercises. Band exercises are often Pumpers, and barbell/dumbbell exercises are often (but not always) stretchers due to the nature of the force pull from gravity at longer muscle lengths.
If you have any other questions concerning the article I’d be glad to answer.
Hi, could you tell me what kind of exercises are these:
1.Lying Cable Bent Knee Hip Extensions off Bench
2. Lying Cable Leg Curls
3. Lying Cable Leg Extensions
4. Standing Cable Hip Extensions
5. Standing Cable Hip Extensions Bent Knee
6. Standing Cable Hip Flexion
7. Lying Cable Hip Extensions Bent Knee
Thank you
Hi Katia,
All of the exercises you mentioned are Activators, as is mostly the case with cable exercises. Band exercises are often Pumpers, and barbell/dumbbell exercises are often (but not always) stretchers due to the nature of the force pull from gravity at longer muscle lengths.
If you have any other questions concerning the article I’d be glad to answer.
Hello, if I put weight on frog pumps, could I become an activator?
Thank you
Definitely. Basically it becomes a glute-emphasized glute bridge. Great idea actually.
Hello, if I put weight on frog pumps, could I become an activator?
Thank you
Definitely. Basically it becomes a glute-emphasized glute bridge. Great idea actually.
Hello, a consultation in stage of definition can train 4 times the buttocks to the week, in the calculator it came out to me 4 times and that I train, of course thank you very much.
Your intuition was right, which is pretty rare when it comes to glute training. Great job and you’re welcome.
Hello, a consultation in stage of definition can train 4 times the buttocks to the week, in the calculator it came out to me 4 times and that I train, of course thank you very much.
Your intuition was right, which is pretty rare when it comes to glute training. Great job and you’re welcome.
Hello Stijn!
After doing this calculator, my results came back that I should be training glutes 10.5 times a week…I’m a little excited and confused by this.
Could you please explain how it is possible to train glutes 10.5xs a week and what that would look like?
Really trying to optimize glute growth as always!
Thank you!!
Hello Rachel,
This means you’re very advanced. Are you sure about your stress levels? People tend to underestimate these.
For some women (such as pro competitors) it’s optimal to do 2 training sessions per day. This is how you could optimize it if you’d really want to:
Training 5x per week
Morning workout:
Bulgarian split squat – 3 sets
Pumper exercise of choice (optional) – 2 sets
Evening (home) workout:
Single-leg hip thrust – 3 sets
Pumper exercise of choice (optional) – 2 sets
Of course, you should rotate between all major glute exercises. Generally, romanian deadlifts and bulgarians go well with hip thrust variations on the same day. Squats go together well with more isolated weighted glute exercises on the same day (kickbacks, etc.)
I do recommend recalculating your optimal training frequency using my other articles (more precise) calculators to make sure: https://bodylogiq.org/en/optimal-training-frequency-glutes-part-2-training-status-stress/
Hello Stijn!
After doing this calculator, my results came back that I should be training glutes 10.5 times a week…I’m a little excited and confused by this.
Could you please explain how it is possible to train glutes 10.5xs a week and what that would look like?
Really trying to optimize glute growth as always!
Thank you!!
Hello Rachel,
This means you’re very advanced. Are you sure about your stress levels? People tend to underestimate these.
For some women (such as pro competitors) it’s optimal to do 2 training sessions per day. This is how you could optimize it if you’d really want to:
Training 5x per week
Morning workout:
Bulgarian split squat – 3 sets
Pumper exercise of choice (optional) – 2 sets
Evening (home) workout:
Single-leg hip thrust – 3 sets
Pumper exercise of choice (optional) – 2 sets
Of course, you should rotate between all major glute exercises. Generally, romanian deadlifts and bulgarians go well with hip thrust variations on the same day. Squats go together well with more isolated weighted glute exercises on the same day (kickbacks, etc.)
I do recommend recalculating your optimal training frequency using my other articles (more precise) calculators to make sure: https://bodylogiq.org/en/optimal-training-frequency-glutes-part-2-training-status-stress/
Hi Stijn
I am a skinny guy who managed to get my weight up from 53kg to 60kg in the last two years. Year one I was on a Mass Builder and year two I decided to up my nutrition and water only.
It paid of good dividends whilst I did not get to 65kg I am happy with the growth. I started following Bret and my mind was blown after I tried the hip thrust. Being a skinny guy who has never done sports – all the exercises great exercises (squat, deadlifts etc.) hurt my lower back. Until I got the glute exercises in.
Now its one of my favorite exercises and I recommend it to everyone. My current best incline leg press is at 210kg. I can do RDL’s, I can Squat and hip thrust drop sets 70kg, 65, 55 etc.
The calculator estimated I can exercise glutes 3.5 per week. My question I guess is, in this 3 day cycle- can I barbell hip thrust on every glute day (is it recommended) or do I variate considerably? As I have noticed If I do drop sets lets say Tuesday and do low to high sets Thursday or Friday I only feel the glutes at the higher KG’s (60 and up). Or is there a better way of growing.
As I always try to incorporate various squats, box jumps, Bulgarian squats etc on days when I do not do glutes so I am always doing stretches. An example is:
Monday
Spin class
Tuesday
Back and Glutes
Wednesday
Chest + Arms and Calves
Thursday
rest day or Shoulder +Legs and glutes
But if I do it thrice a week with two cardio classes – I would like to gain and not just do it for the sake of doing thrice if that makes sense.
Excuse this long post.
Hey Hein,
Good for you that you discovered the Hip thrust. Bret struck gold with that exercise. Definitely change up exercises to allow max recovery from the movement pattern. I really like the combo of Hip thrusts day 1, RDLs day 2, and Bulgarian splits day 3.
The most important thing is tracking progress on these exercises. A stronger glute muscle is a bigger glute muscle, so make sure you’re getting stronger on these exercises over time to know you’re getting somewhere. Try to get a logical systems, only do squats step ups, etc. when youre actually training glutes that day, which for you should be 3.5 times per week.
Hi Stijn
Thanks for the feedback, I will track according a three month schedule and keep glute day’s to glute only.
Hi Stijn
I am a skinny guy who managed to get my weight up from 53kg to 60kg in the last two years. Year one I was on a Mass Builder and year two I decided to up my nutrition and water only.
It paid of good dividends whilst I did not get to 65kg I am happy with the growth. I started following Bret and my mind was blown after I tried the hip thrust. Being a skinny guy who has never done sports – all the exercises great exercises (squat, deadlifts etc.) hurt my lower back. Until I got the glute exercises in.
Now its one of my favorite exercises and I recommend it to everyone. My current best incline leg press is at 210kg. I can do RDL’s, I can Squat and hip thrust drop sets 70kg, 65, 55 etc.
The calculator estimated I can exercise glutes 3.5 per week. My question I guess is, in this 3 day cycle- can I barbell hip thrust on every glute day (is it recommended) or do I variate considerably? As I have noticed If I do drop sets lets say Tuesday and do low to high sets Thursday or Friday I only feel the glutes at the higher KG’s (60 and up). Or is there a better way of growing.
As I always try to incorporate various squats, box jumps, Bulgarian squats etc on days when I do not do glutes so I am always doing stretches. An example is:
Monday
Spin class
Tuesday
Back and Glutes
Wednesday
Chest + Arms and Calves
Thursday
rest day or Shoulder +Legs and glutes
But if I do it thrice a week with two cardio classes – I would like to gain and not just do it for the sake of doing thrice if that makes sense.
Excuse this long post.
Hey Hein,
Good for you that you discovered the Hip thrust. Bret struck gold with that exercise. Definitely change up exercises to allow max recovery from the movement pattern. I really like the combo of Hip thrusts day 1, RDLs day 2, and Bulgarian splits day 3.
The most important thing is tracking progress on these exercises. A stronger glute muscle is a bigger glute muscle, so make sure you’re getting stronger on these exercises over time to know you’re getting somewhere. Try to get a logical systems, only do squats step ups, etc. when youre actually training glutes that day, which for you should be 3.5 times per week.
Hi Stijn
Thanks for the feedback, I will track according a three month schedule and keep glute day’s to glute only.
Hi Stijn,
I’ve recently read your part 1 and this article and calculated my glutes to be elite. Even at high stress times I should be able to workout my glutes 5x a week. My question is how soreness correlates with the SRA curve? I’ve created a 4 day glute split of; Wednesay (activators & pumpers), Thursday (arms & pumpers), Friday (stretchers & pumpers) and Sunday (stretchers & activators). I’ve kept my weekly sets for stretchers and activators around 30-35. I did the first workout two days ago and my glutes are still pretty sore, does that meant he SRA curve is not finished or do these two things have nothing to do with eachother and should I just push through the soreness for my next glute workout?
I hope that made sense! Thank you!
Hi Rachel,
Soreness is an indicator of muscle damage, which often occurs when a muscle hasn’t been trained in a while. Being sore is not related to how much the muscle will grow, however. Don’t stress it too much. Your glutes aren’t accustomed to this sudden increase in volume yet. You should be fine after 1-2 weeks of following your new program. You can push through the soreness. Just make sure it doesn’t prevent you from doing the movements correctly. Then it’s wise to wait a day extra.
Hi Stijn,
I’ve recently read your part 1 and this article and calculated my glutes to be elite. Even at high stress times I should be able to workout my glutes 5x a week. My question is how soreness correlates with the SRA curve? I’ve created a 4 day glute split of; Wednesay (activators & pumpers), Thursday (arms & pumpers), Friday (stretchers & pumpers) and Sunday (stretchers & activators). I’ve kept my weekly sets for stretchers and activators around 30-35. I did the first workout two days ago and my glutes are still pretty sore, does that meant he SRA curve is not finished or do these two things have nothing to do with eachother and should I just push through the soreness for my next glute workout?
I hope that made sense! Thank you!
Hi Rachel,
Soreness is an indicator of muscle damage, which often occurs when a muscle hasn’t been trained in a while. Being sore is not related to how much the muscle will grow, however. Don’t stress it too much. Your glutes aren’t accustomed to this sudden increase in volume yet. You should be fine after 1-2 weeks of following your new program. You can push through the soreness. Just make sure it doesn’t prevent you from doing the movements correctly. Then it’s wise to wait a day extra.
Hi, what do you think about training glutes every day and switch like : day 1 hip thrust , day 2 romanian dealift, day 3 bulgarian split squat etc and add some activators and stretchers ?
Is it wrong to do every day a stretcher exercise knowing that it takes longer to recover from ?
Hey Nina, that’s totally fine. Well, when your glutes are advanced/elite training status they recover quite quickly, even from stretchers, so they can be performed quite frequently. It’s different when you’re a highly stressed beginner of course, then you’ll likely need more rest between your glute sessions. You can read more about it in my newest article: https://bayesianbodybuilding.com/optimal-training-frequency-glutes-part-ii/
Hi, what do you think about training glutes every day and switch like : day 1 hip thrust , day 2 romanian dealift, day 3 bulgarian split squat etc and add some activators and stretchers ?
Is it wrong to do every day a stretcher exercise knowing that it takes longer to recover from ?
Hey Nina, that’s totally fine. Well, when your glutes are advanced/elite training status they recover quite quickly, even from stretchers, so they can be performed quite frequently. It’s different when you’re a highly stressed beginner of course, then you’ll likely need more rest between your glute sessions. You can read more about it in my newest article: https://bayesianbodybuilding.com/optimal-training-frequency-glutes-part-ii/
Hey, I am totally confused… Is it okay if I train my legs/glutes twice a week on Monday and Friday and do three tretchers in each workout and activators? Your calculator says I am an advanced Trainee.. So my plan would by on Mondays: Hip Thrusts (4sets), Romanian Deadlifts (4 Sets), Bulgarian Squats (3 Sets), step ups (3 Sets) and Banded Kick Backs and on Fridays: Squats (4 sets), Hip Thrusts (4 Sets), Lunges (3 sets), legpress(2 sets) and abduction (3 sets).Would you say that this plan is good or too much? I am also bulking and eating in a calorie Surplus.
Hi Kira,
You in particular could get a lot better results by spreading the exercises over 4-6 days in the week: make sure the total number of sets per week stays the same.
but why would it be better to spread the exercises over 4-6 days instead of doing them on two days ? MY worload would be the same? And I don´t have more time than two days for training legs.. Is my way uneffective?
It’s better because at your level of glute advancedness, your glutes only grow about 24-36 hours after a workout. If you only train 2 times per week this leaves about 4 days out of the week where your glutes aren’t growing. Of course, if it doesn’t fit your lifestyle, training 2 times is still effective, but it’s not optimal.
do we talk about with two times Training my glutes its only 80 % effective instead of 100 % or do you think there is more difference? Personally, I also have a huge volume in my workouts and when I train like I want I have counted 40 sets or even a littble bit more for my glutes in a week. Do you think that is still okay or too much?
Hey, I am totally confused… Is it okay if I train my legs/glutes twice a week on Monday and Friday and do three tretchers in each workout and activators? Your calculator says I am an advanced Trainee.. So my plan would by on Mondays: Hip Thrusts (4sets), Romanian Deadlifts (4 Sets), Bulgarian Squats (3 Sets), step ups (3 Sets) and Banded Kick Backs and on Fridays: Squats (4 sets), Hip Thrusts (4 Sets), Lunges (3 sets), legpress(2 sets) and abduction (3 sets).Would you say that this plan is good or too much? I am also bulking and eating in a calorie Surplus.
Hi Kira,
You in particular could get a lot better results by spreading the exercises over 4-6 days in the week: make sure the total number of sets per week stays the same.
but why would it be better to spread the exercises over 4-6 days instead of doing them on two days ? MY worload would be the same? And I don´t have more time than two days for training legs.. Is my way uneffective?
It’s better because at your level of glute advancedness, your glutes only grow about 24-36 hours after a workout. If you only train 2 times per week this leaves about 4 days out of the week where your glutes aren’t growing. Of course, if it doesn’t fit your lifestyle, training 2 times is still effective, but it’s not optimal.
do we talk about with two times Training my glutes its only 80 % effective instead of 100 % or do you think there is more difference? Personally, I also have a huge volume in my workouts and when I train like I want I have counted 40 sets or even a littble bit more for my glutes in a week. Do you think that is still okay or too much?
and would it be a good idea despite my huge amount of sets to involve one day where I only do pumper exercices for my glutes? With this way I would train them three times instead of only two. And on my usual leg days I perform all the stretchers and activators? But I am worrying about that, because then the number of my sets increases
Training 2x per week instead of 6x for example would be 50-70% as effective, if I can estimate. Better to take 2 exercises from your main workouts and do those at home if you only want to go to the gym 2x per week.
For example:
Workout 1 (gym)
Squat
Hip thrust
Workout 2 (home)
Single-leg hip thrust on bed
Workout 3 (gym)
Deadlift
Bulgarian split squat
Workout 4 (home)
Banded Bulgarian split squat on bed
For 25-35 sets in total.
But I do my stretchers heavy till moderate heavy and I don´t wanna omit this… at home I don´t have weight for those exercices, so I have to do them in the gym… This whole worout schedule Thing is making me crazy, cause I want the good results so much… Can you maybe tell me how I can do many stretchers in 2 sessions and still make good results? I have already told you what stretchers I usually do and I don´t want to relinquish my sets of stretchers. And are 40 sets still okay for glutes/legs in a week?
I also have the feeling after a workout where I´ve done less sets than normal and in total maybe only 30 sets instead of 40 in a week that this is not enough, since after my workouts I still feel fresh in this case and don´t feel much in glutes.. Or is this normal ?
and would it be a good idea despite my huge amount of sets to involve one day where I only do pumper exercices for my glutes? With this way I would train them three times instead of only two. And on my usual leg days I perform all the stretchers and activators? But I am worrying about that, because then the number of my sets increases
Training 2x per week instead of 6x for example would be 50-70% as effective, if I can estimate. Better to take 2 exercises from your main workouts and do those at home if you only want to go to the gym 2x per week.
For example:
Workout 1 (gym)
Squat
Hip thrust
Workout 2 (home)
Single-leg hip thrust on bed
Workout 3 (gym)
Deadlift
Bulgarian split squat
Workout 4 (home)
Banded Bulgarian split squat on bed
For 25-35 sets in total.
But I do my stretchers heavy till moderate heavy and I don´t wanna omit this… at home I don´t have weight for those exercices, so I have to do them in the gym… This whole worout schedule Thing is making me crazy, cause I want the good results so much… Can you maybe tell me how I can do many stretchers in 2 sessions and still make good results? I have already told you what stretchers I usually do and I don´t want to relinquish my sets of stretchers. And are 40 sets still okay for glutes/legs in a week?
I also have the feeling after a workout where I´ve done less sets than normal and in total maybe only 30 sets instead of 40 in a week that this is not enough, since after my workouts I still feel fresh in this case and don´t feel much in glutes.. Or is this normal ?
I am considered elite level but I don’t think I am training enough. Can you critique what I am doing currently?
So far I do the following:
Monday
Low bar squats
Leg Press
Lunges
Leg Curls
Heavy Hip Thrust
Friday:
Deadlift
Hip Thrust (Light to moderate)
Moderate high bar squat
Single Leg Deadlifts
Back Extensions
What type of exercises do you recommend me adding? I train 6 days a week.
Hi Amanda,
You only train Monday and Friday but you train 6x per week?
I suggest spreading 30-40 sets of Activators/stretchers over the 6 days. So about 6 total sets per training session. You can add in pumper work as you please.
It’s so important not to do too many exercises per single session. Spreading is better than piling up. Especially when you’re Elite.
I am considered elite level but I don’t think I am training enough. Can you critique what I am doing currently?
So far I do the following:
Monday
Low bar squats
Leg Press
Lunges
Leg Curls
Heavy Hip Thrust
Friday:
Deadlift
Hip Thrust (Light to moderate)
Moderate high bar squat
Single Leg Deadlifts
Back Extensions
What type of exercises do you recommend me adding? I train 6 days a week.
Hi Amanda,
You only train Monday and Friday but you train 6x per week?
I suggest spreading 30-40 sets of Activators/stretchers over the 6 days. So about 6 total sets per training session. You can add in pumper work as you please.
It’s so important not to do too many exercises per single session. Spreading is better than piling up. Especially when you’re Elite.
My glutes are small and flat…I have lost weight and I still have about 30 pounds to lose…I will be following a keto diet to deal with my PCOS and to lose these last 30 pds…However, I would like to grow my glutes or round them out..Should I be trying to build muscle and lose weight at a slower rate? Or, lose the 30 pounds first and try to hold on to the little glutes I have? I will be training glutes 6 days a week starting today..
Hi Tammie, a keto diet is definitely recommended with PCOS, as insulin sensitivity is low. Definitely lose the excess 30 lbs first with an optimal rate of fat loss. I’d be striving for 1-1.5% bodyweight loss per day. To be on the safe side I’d train glutes 3-5x per week with heavy Romanian deadlifts, hip thrusts, etc. to make sure you keep or even grow as much glute mass as possible. Monitor your strength on these exercises to make sure you’re getting stronger and stronger.
My glutes are small and flat…I have lost weight and I still have about 30 pounds to lose…I will be following a keto diet to deal with my PCOS and to lose these last 30 pds…However, I would like to grow my glutes or round them out..Should I be trying to build muscle and lose weight at a slower rate? Or, lose the 30 pounds first and try to hold on to the little glutes I have? I will be training glutes 6 days a week starting today..
Hi Tammie, a keto diet is definitely recommended with PCOS, as insulin sensitivity is low. Definitely lose the excess 30 lbs first with an optimal rate of fat loss. I’d be striving for 1-1.5% bodyweight loss per day. To be on the safe side I’d train glutes 3-5x per week with heavy Romanian deadlifts, hip thrusts, etc. to make sure you keep or even grow as much glute mass as possible. Monitor your strength on these exercises to make sure you’re getting stronger and stronger.
Hello Stijn, can u please tell me how I can add muscle in my legs and glutes. I train 5 days a week and see a not much progress. My metalbolism is very high I’m hungry all the time. I also work 7 days a week and have medium/high level stress. I’m tall 511 180 cm.and 46 years old but body looks like 30 years old. I need good advice for once and do I eat to much carbs ? What is it that my muscles stay away special my lowebody glutes/legs
Hope u can help 🙂
Hello Nathalie, I suggest you have a look at my free workout day sample: http://bit.ly/email-to-sample-day
You could perform that workout 4 times per week, perform one set less per exercise (because of your stress levels) and give that a try. Other than that these are very specific questions that I can only help with once I get a full assessment, for example by coaching.
To give you a hand:
Progressive overload is almost always the problem. Try to lift more every single workout you do (see the sample workout).
Not eating enough is a problem, too. These are the 2 main promotors of muscle gain.
Bringing your stress levels down can also help, as well as getting your sleep in order.
Hello Stijn, can u please tell me how I can add muscle in my legs and glutes. I train 5 days a week and see a not much progress. My metalbolism is very high I’m hungry all the time. I also work 7 days a week and have medium/high level stress. I’m tall 511 180 cm.and 46 years old but body looks like 30 years old. I need good advice for once and do I eat to much carbs ? What is it that my muscles stay away special my lowebody glutes/legs
Hope u can help 🙂
Hello Nathalie, I suggest you have a look at my free workout day sample: http://bit.ly/email-to-sample-day
You could perform that workout 4 times per week, perform one set less per exercise (because of your stress levels) and give that a try. Other than that these are very specific questions that I can only help with once I get a full assessment, for example by coaching.
To give you a hand:
Progressive overload is almost always the problem. Try to lift more every single workout you do (see the sample workout).
Not eating enough is a problem, too. These are the 2 main promotors of muscle gain.
Bringing your stress levels down can also help, as well as getting your sleep in order.
Hi Stijn, I was wondering if you have any articles on nutrition for glute training/growth. I’m at the point where I am a decent size and have a goal of growing my glutes. But I have mostly body fat and know that weight training will help. What I’m confused about is whether I should eat below my calorie maintenance to lose the extra fat or above my calorie maintenance for muscle growth. I’m afraid that if I eat above my calorie maintenance for muscle growth, I’ll end up gaining even more fat.
Hey Daniece,
No specific articles on that, no. However, I am writing a book on it. If you email me at [email protected] I’ll specifically gift you the first chapter to download. I understand your concerns. What you need to do is calorie cycling; to lose body fat and possibly gain muscle at the same time. And this is exactly what the book is about.
Hi Stijn, I was wondering if you have any articles on nutrition for glute training/growth. I’m at the point where I am a decent size and have a goal of growing my glutes. But I have mostly body fat and know that weight training will help. What I’m confused about is whether I should eat below my calorie maintenance to lose the extra fat or above my calorie maintenance for muscle growth. I’m afraid that if I eat above my calorie maintenance for muscle growth, I’ll end up gaining even more fat.
Hey Daniece,
No specific articles on that, no. However, I am writing a book on it. If you email me at [email protected] I’ll specifically gift you the first chapter to download. I understand your concerns. What you need to do is calorie cycling; to lose body fat and possibly gain muscle at the same time. And this is exactly what the book is about.
Hey! I workout my entire body every week, but because i’m a student and work in the weekend (as a maid in a hotel) every two weeks, i can’t work out as much as when i’m free.. for a while now I have dedicated an entire day for a mucle group or two, like this
Biceps and shoulders
Chest and triceps
Legs
Back
when I have the weekend off, i train my legs, 2-3 times that week. My typical work out consists of Squats (very heavy), and 10 reps hip thrust (100 kg x 3 + 90kgx1), barbell lunges (stationary, ordinary and pulse), single leg deadlift, kneeling cable hip extension and maybe step ups. Does this not cause my glutes to grow? could they grow more?
Hey Kayla,
You’re doing big compound movements which is great!
What you should look at, is doing 15-25 sets of glute sets per week, and spread them out over 2 workouts. That’s what I think could give you better results instead of just training them once per week. To give you detailed recommendations I would have to know a lot more about your circumstances. If you like, you can have a look at the tailor-made programs I designed here: https://bodylogiq.org/en/optimized-glute-training-templates/
Stijn
Hey! I workout my entire body every week, but because i’m a student and work in the weekend (as a maid in a hotel) every two weeks, i can’t work out as much as when i’m free.. for a while now I have dedicated an entire day for a mucle group or two, like this
Biceps and shoulders
Chest and triceps
Legs
Back
when I have the weekend off, i train my legs, 2-3 times that week. My typical work out consists of Squats (very heavy), and 10 reps hip thrust (100 kg x 3 + 90kgx1), barbell lunges (stationary, ordinary and pulse), single leg deadlift, kneeling cable hip extension and maybe step ups. Does this not cause my glutes to grow? could they grow more?
Hey Kayla,
You’re doing big compound movements which is great!
What you should look at, is doing 15-25 sets of glute sets per week, and spread them out over 2 workouts. That’s what I think could give you better results instead of just training them once per week. To give you detailed recommendations I would have to know a lot more about your circumstances. If you like, you can have a look at the tailor-made programs I designed here: https://bodylogiq.org/en/optimized-glute-training-templates/
Stijn
Hi Stijn,
I have elite from your calculator as I can do 220lb hip thrusts for 10 reps but I still consider myself a beginner as I started 6months ago with 130lb. Should I take into account the fact that I have only been training for 6 months into my recovery time? I have seen some progress in the shape of my glutes, they are much rounder but would like them to grow much more in size.
Thank you for your time!
Hi Jocelyn,
You should definitely not consider yourself as a beginner. Training status has very little to do with time, you see; some people have been spinning their wheels for years, being stuck at the beginner level, while genetically gifted on an optimized program can jump from beginner to intermediate within a matter of weeks.
Hi Stijn,
I have elite from your calculator as I can do 220lb hip thrusts for 10 reps but I still consider myself a beginner as I started 6months ago with 130lb. Should I take into account the fact that I have only been training for 6 months into my recovery time? I have seen some progress in the shape of my glutes, they are much rounder but would like them to grow much more in size.
Thank you for your time!
Hi Jocelyn,
You should definitely not consider yourself as a beginner. Training status has very little to do with time, you see; some people have been spinning their wheels for years, being stuck at the beginner level, while genetically gifted on an optimized program can jump from beginner to intermediate within a matter of weeks.
So the calculator says for me, I should train glutes 8.4 times per week?! But it says my recovery time is 20 hours. I’m currently doing 3 times per week mostly stretchers and activators. I feel to be honest to even do more than this would compromise my recovery time… I don’t get it.
Depends on how many sets per workout you perform. If you would spread those out over 6-7 days, you will be fresher at the start of every exercise, and you can probably perform more quality reps per exercise, which helps overall muscle growth. Still, training 3 times per week is just fine. It’s probably just not optimal. Read my instagram post for more info on why: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bmi1jmOg8ik/
So the calculator says for me, I should train glutes 8.4 times per week?! But it says my recovery time is 20 hours. I’m currently doing 3 times per week mostly stretchers and activators. I feel to be honest to even do more than this would compromise my recovery time… I don’t get it.
Depends on how many sets per workout you perform. If you would spread those out over 6-7 days, you will be fresher at the start of every exercise, and you can probably perform more quality reps per exercise, which helps overall muscle growth. Still, training 3 times per week is just fine. It’s probably just not optimal. Read my instagram post for more info on why: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bmi1jmOg8ik/
Hi Stijn,
I have been researching glute training for my girlfriend and read some stuff from Bret and you. With some inspiration by the programs I saw, I put together something like this. How can I fit some home workout pumper days into this also how much work should be done in a home pumper session? I feel like a pumper day after day A would hinder the recovery. This program is solely for bikini fitness and it is done as A – B – A, mon, wed, fri. (she doesn’t like the idea of wide hips just full big glutes so no abduction movement). Thanks for your help!
A
4×6-8 hip thrust (3min)
3×8-12 bulgarian split squat (90s)
2×10-15 romanian deadlift (90s)
3×20-25 glute kickback (30s)
2×10-15 shoulder press (90s)
2×10-15 lat pulldown (90s)
B
3×12-15 hip thrust (3min)
2×8-12 lunge (90s)
4×20-25 glute kickback (30s)
2x30second kettlebell swing (90s)
2×10-15 incline dumbell bench press (90s)
2×10-15 cable row (90s)
Hi Can,
From what I can see, that’s about 30-40 glute sets per week, which is a lot for most women: she may not be able to recover from it all, unless she’s highly advanced, low stress and great sleep.
Honestly, you could add in 1 or 2 pumper days, but the program you already set up is going to give 80-95% of the results, really.
Home pumper could look like:
3 sets of Frog pumps.
2 sets of Bouncing (half) squats with a band around knees.
That’s it!
Would take out the glute kickbacks from day A and remove hip thrust from day B and she will probably get better results, because she’ll be doing more like 20-30 sets of glutes per week.
Make sure to measure whether her strength is increasing in the big movements. If not: something is wrong. If she regresses in strength: she’s very likely overtraining.
Hi Stijn,
I have been researching glute training for my girlfriend and read some stuff from Bret and you. With some inspiration by the programs I saw, I put together something like this. How can I fit some home workout pumper days into this also how much work should be done in a home pumper session? I feel like a pumper day after day A would hinder the recovery. This program is solely for bikini fitness and it is done as A – B – A, mon, wed, fri. (she doesn’t like the idea of wide hips just full big glutes so no abduction movement). Thanks for your help!
A
4×6-8 hip thrust (3min)
3×8-12 bulgarian split squat (90s)
2×10-15 romanian deadlift (90s)
3×20-25 glute kickback (30s)
2×10-15 shoulder press (90s)
2×10-15 lat pulldown (90s)
B
3×12-15 hip thrust (3min)
2×8-12 lunge (90s)
4×20-25 glute kickback (30s)
2x30second kettlebell swing (90s)
2×10-15 incline dumbell bench press (90s)
2×10-15 cable row (90s)
Hi Can,
From what I can see, that’s about 30-40 glute sets per week, which is a lot for most women: she may not be able to recover from it all, unless she’s highly advanced, low stress and great sleep.
Honestly, you could add in 1 or 2 pumper days, but the program you already set up is going to give 80-95% of the results, really.
Home pumper could look like:
3 sets of Frog pumps.
2 sets of Bouncing (half) squats with a band around knees.
That’s it!
Would take out the glute kickbacks from day A and remove hip thrust from day B and she will probably get better results, because she’ll be doing more like 20-30 sets of glutes per week.
Make sure to measure whether her strength is increasing in the big movements. If not: something is wrong. If she regresses in strength: she’s very likely overtraining.
Good day stijn.
Please I would love to know why the calculator says since I do hip thrust with 20kg and Bulgarian split squat with just holding a 10kg barbell on the none loaded als my glute workout . It says I should train the glute 3.5 per week and my recovery is 48-72hours. I do this workout in just 3 days.
Monday
Box squats 3×15 with 20kg weight
Hip thrust 3×15 wth 20kg
B-stance hip thrust 3×10 with 20kg
Rdl 3×15 with 20kg
Single leg rdl with just 6kg barbell
Finisher frog pump
Wednesday
Banded kneeling kick back 3×10
Banded pulse squat 3×12
6kg Kettlebell swing 3×45 second
Glute bridges 3×20 with 20kg weight barbell
Bulgarian split squat 3×12 6kg barbell
Friday
Deficit lunges bodyweight 3×15
Deficit curtsy lunges bodyweights 3×15
1 1/2 pulse squat 3×12
Side lunges 3×12 bodyweight
Hip thrust 3×15. 20kg.
Is this too much? I have a very high stress level. I workout from home . A mom of two. Youngest is 6 months old oldest is 2. I work as a nurse.
Pls help me out. I’m just 64 kg. Just a normal body weight. Im 34. I feel so insecure about how my butt now look after two kids. ?
Hi Victory,
From what I can see you’re now performing about 45 sets in total for your glutes per week. If your stress levels are high then this is probably way too much to recover from.
Focus on *gaining strength* on Bulgarian split squat (with a band), Romanian Deadlift, (single leg) hip thrust. This is the key to glute growth. I do highly recommend going to a gym for this, as there you can increase the weights.
To read more about my thoughts about doing too much glute work (which 90% of women out there do), see this post: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bu5axKdFjNU/
Women with high stress levels and your strength levels I would normally put on 10-14 sets of glutes per week max. Yes, this means about 2 exercises per workout for 2 sets. Seems like nothing, but they do a lot better on this because they actually recover from it (they get stronger!).
The glutes are just another muscle. 45 sets is way too much in 99% of times. You don’t perform 45 sets for your shoulder either, right? Think about it.
Good day stijn.
Please I would love to know why the calculator says since I do hip thrust with 20kg and Bulgarian split squat with just holding a 10kg barbell on the none loaded als my glute workout . It says I should train the glute 3.5 per week and my recovery is 48-72hours. I do this workout in just 3 days.
Monday
Box squats 3×15 with 20kg weight
Hip thrust 3×15 wth 20kg
B-stance hip thrust 3×10 with 20kg
Rdl 3×15 with 20kg
Single leg rdl with just 6kg barbell
Finisher frog pump
Wednesday
Banded kneeling kick back 3×10
Banded pulse squat 3×12
6kg Kettlebell swing 3×45 second
Glute bridges 3×20 with 20kg weight barbell
Bulgarian split squat 3×12 6kg barbell
Friday
Deficit lunges bodyweight 3×15
Deficit curtsy lunges bodyweights 3×15
1 1/2 pulse squat 3×12
Side lunges 3×12 bodyweight
Hip thrust 3×15. 20kg.
Is this too much? I have a very high stress level. I workout from home . A mom of two. Youngest is 6 months old oldest is 2. I work as a nurse.
Pls help me out. I’m just 64 kg. Just a normal body weight. Im 34. I feel so insecure about how my butt now look after two kids. ?
Hi Victory,
From what I can see you’re now performing about 45 sets in total for your glutes per week. If your stress levels are high then this is probably way too much to recover from.
Focus on *gaining strength* on Bulgarian split squat (with a band), Romanian Deadlift, (single leg) hip thrust. This is the key to glute growth. I do highly recommend going to a gym for this, as there you can increase the weights.
To read more about my thoughts about doing too much glute work (which 90% of women out there do), see this post: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bu5axKdFjNU/
Women with high stress levels and your strength levels I would normally put on 10-14 sets of glutes per week max. Yes, this means about 2 exercises per workout for 2 sets. Seems like nothing, but they do a lot better on this because they actually recover from it (they get stronger!).
The glutes are just another muscle. 45 sets is way too much in 99% of times. You don’t perform 45 sets for your shoulder either, right? Think about it.
Hi Stijn,
I have been following a Upper-/Lower-Split (two upper body days and two lower body days) and want to keep that. I can hip thrust 60 kg for about 3×10 reps at 60 kg body weight. I would like to go to the gym 4 times a week.
My idea is to train my glutes on every day I go to the gym, with pumpers on my upper body days. Could you please have a look at my workout routine suggestion? I don’t want to neglect my quads, I prefer to workout my legs with just a little bit of emphasis on the glutes.
Mo:
Squats
Hip Thrusts
Dumbbell B-Stance RDLs
Dumbbell Bulgarian Split Squats
Lateral Band Walks
Tu: Upper Body + Pumpers (which would be appropriate?)
We: Rest
Th:
Sumo Deadlifts
Reverse Lunges
Heels Elevated Goblet Squats
Rounded Back Extensions
Frog Pumps
Fr: Upper Body + Pumpers (which would be best?)
Weekend: Off
Thanks so much!
Emma
Hi Emma,
Looking at your program, you’re doing quite a lot of volume for the glutes (over 30 sets per week). This is what I see so much: women somehow think the glutes are different from any other muscle, and that they can recover from any amount of volume.
Rather, I would advise to spread your glute work over 4 workouts”
Day 1: 3-4 sets of deadlifts
Day 2: 3-4 sets of hip thrust
Day 3: 3-4 sets of bulgarian split squats
Day 4: 3-4 sets of rounded back extensions
That’s it.
This comes down to 12-16 sets per week of quality glute work. Supplement it with some pumpers, and I think you’re going to progress much better. Also have a look at my post: https://www.instagram.com/p/BzZnIcJDyXh/
The main message: don’t do too much volume. Your chest probably can’t recover from 30 sets per week, and the same is true for your glures.
Don’t focus on feeling the glutes or the feeling of having worked out: focus on actual measurable strength gains, because these indicate muscle growth.
Thank you very much.
Hi Stijn,
I would really appreciate some advice on how to improve this programme/how the volume should be spread out and how playing sport will effect recovery/building mass
My preferred exercises tend to be activators – I avoid squats as my femurs are really long and I would prefer to keep quad activation to a minimum. They seem to build easily..
I entered a longer recovery time of 60 hours as I often don’t sleep very well. Does this sound right to you for activators or should I extend the rest period?
According to the calculator my optimal training is 2.8 so does that mean 3 times per week? My preference is to hit the gym twice a week but could possibly fit in some pumpers at home once a week if really necessary
I have not worked out in years but I am quite athletic and build muscle easily when I keep to a routine (well I think so anyway unless the changes I see are psychological
This is the routine I have put together –
3 sets x 10 reps hip thrusts at 30kg – could potentially lift a heavier weight but thought this would be a good starting point?
3 sets x 20 reps of cable kick backs
3 sets x 20 reps cable hip abduction 15lb
or
3 sets x20 reps cable hip adduction 15lb
(I usually find these hard as time goes and often do 15 on the 3rd set)
I want to go to the gym on Mondays evenings and Thursday lunch times or better yet, Fridays if extending the recovery time wouldn’t hamper progress. I play sport on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays.
you know the area where some women get dimples on their asses? that is the area I would like to build the most
Please may you suggest improvements to my routine?
Many thanks
Hello Kat,
Thanks for you message!
3 times per week sounds right.
Routine looks fine if you don’t want to build quadriceps mass
Romanian deadlift is worth looking into, and a one-legged hip thrust, to change it up. But great starting point. Focus on getting stronger! That’s progress.
Hip ADductions work you inner thighs and make the muscles bigger, just so you know.
wow, just amazing and informative content. This content helps anybody. Thanks for sharing this post. Just highly recommend it.
Thanks!
hi stijn! i am just confused on how to apply the frequency to create a program for me :(. i still don’t know how many sets of what to do. I calculated a 3.5, and i am a beginner. looking forward for your help
Hi Auddy, this is very dependent on your specific context.
I highly recommend seeking out a coach to give you personalized help. Have a look at https://campidellcoaching.com/